Veolia wins Norwegian oil platform decommissioning contract

A contract to decommission a 14,000 tonne oil platform in the Norwegian North Sea has been won by Veolia Environmental Services.

Veolia has a target to recycle 99.7 per cent of the material from the platform.

Owned by the YME consortium, the platform is 72 metres in length and 87 metres high. It will be removed and towed in a single lift from its current North Sea location and will be dismantled by Veolia at its decommissioning site at Lutelandet in Norway (pictured) after it arrives in mid-2015.

Materials that will be recycled from the floating platform include precious metals, iron, steel and electrical items.

Veolia will also be entering into a long-term agreement with its Norwegian partner, Lutelandet Offshore to develop a deep-water quay and site at Lutelandet.

The YME platform will be the first in an anticipated pipeline of work that Veolia will undertake at the site and will enable the company to benefit from the growth in the North Sea decommissioning sector.

Veolia senior vice president UK and Ireland Estelle Brachlianoff said: “This new decommissioning operation confirms Veolia’s strategic position and its expertise in this ever expanding £1 billion a year market with 2,000 platforms needing to be decommissioned over the next 10 years.

“This significant contract with YME will be our foothold in the oil and gas sector which is integral to our future growth.”